Ben Simmons has grown from being one of the hottest Australian prospects to one of the fastest rising stars in the big league. Since his high school days, the NBA star has accumulated an impressive résumé that makes him a threat and a force to reckon with on the court.
But none of it would have been possible without a family willing to support him to the ends of the earth. From a father who was a former professional basketball player to a mother who is a renowned Australia socialite; here is a deep dive into Ben’s support system and how it came to be.
His Father Played In The Australian Basketball League
One of the factors that have influenced Ben Simmons’ rapid rise as a professional player is the wealth of experience he had to draw from growing up. His father Dave Simmons is a former professional basketball player who spent thirteen seasons in the Australian National Basketball League.
A native of New York City, Dave Simmons played college basketball for Oklahoma City University before a trip around Central and South America that eventually landed him in the Australian NBA in 1989 and started a thirteen-year long career in the league. Although the ANBA was no match for America’s NBA, Ben Simmons’s father was a superstar, a fan favorite for teams like the Melbourne Tigers and Newcastle Falcons.
At the end of his career in the Australian League, he had played for six teams, including the Canberra Cannons and Sydney Kings. In recognition of his time with the team, the Melbourne Tigers retired his No. 25 jersey.
After his playing career ended, he took up a coaching career. He coached the Hunter Pirates as an assistant between 2003 and 2005.
Ben Simmons’ Mother Used To Be a Cheerleader
Compared to his father, Ben Simmons’ mother Julie Simmons had quite a quiet past. Formerly Julie Tribe, she was born on January 21, 1958, and used to be an aerobics instructor and cheerleader. She was also an executive assistant for a certain organization.
Julie was a cheerleader for the Melbourne Tigers, and it was during this point in her professional life that she met Dave Simmons. At the time, Julie had been married to an unknown man. After meeting each other in 1989, Julie and Dave began a relationship and got married in 1994.
Ben’s sister Olivia Simmons was born in December 1991, while Ben himself was born in July 1996, both of them were born in Australia. Ben’s parents also share four children from Julie’s first marriage. They are Melissa, Sean, Emily, and Liam.
How Ben’s Parents Influenced His Career
Ben’s family has been a great support system in his career journey. The NBA star has admitted that their constant presence on the court has been of immense help and a significant boost to his success story.
Ben’s parents had a profound impact on his career. His passing ability and teamwork, which is one of his most herald qualities, comes from the Australian basketball culture. Furthermore, Ben’s first NBA coach, Brett Brown, was an assistant coach for the Melbourne Tigers when his father played for the team.
But most importantly, Ben Simmons’s father’s career is his biggest influence. According to him, Dave Simmons is the reason he picked up a ball at all. While his father was a player, Ben enjoyed watching him play, and he still watches his videos. According to him, his performances as a player inspire him to deliver his best in every game. That effect impacted him through high school and college to become the number one pick in the 2016 NBA Draft.
Now an active player in the NBA, his parents still retain influential positions in his life. They live just one street away from him in Philadelphia, and he credits his mother for keeping the family together and happy. Away from the court and the lights, the star appreciates his mum, whom he describes as a typical Aussie mum, for holding everybody together and also keeping him grounded despite his NBA star status.
But it isn’t just his parents. Ben’s brother, Sean, is his roommate, protector, and even spokesman. He helps him manage his life outside the court. Sean was particularly of immense help to Ben during his recovery from a foot injury in 2016.
The NBA Star Isn’t The Only Athlete In His Family
One of his brothers, Liam, was a coach for the Nicholls State Colonels men’s basketball team. He is currently an assistant for the Southwest Baptist Bearcats basketball team.
His sister Emily was a part of Washington State University women’s rowing team. An expansion of the Simmons family via marriage has also seen former NFL running back Michael Bush join the family. He is married to Ben’s half-sister, Emily.
His biological sister, Olivia, is also an athlete. She was a former college basketball player for the Arizona State Sun Devils. In high school, she played for Box Hill Senior Secondary College, helping them to the Australian School Championship title.
Relationship History of The Basketball Player
Over the years, Ben Simmons has dated a few women, from Tinashe to the supermodel, Kendall Jenner. But the first of them is the lesser-known Dylan Gonzalez.
Dylan Gonzalez (June – November 2017)
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In the early days of his career in the NBA, Ben Simmons reportedly sparked a relationship with Dylan Gonzalez. She is a former women’s basketball player, and they were supposedly together between June and November 2017. According to Elite Daily, the relationship may have fizzled out after they failed to build a connection beyond their shared love for basketball.
Tinashe Kachingwe (March – May 2018)
He surprised his fans in 2018 when he went public with the news that he was dating American singer/actress, Tinashe Kachingwe. The pair were spotted together at some games and also posted pictures of each other on social media.
But a few months later, news emerged that the NBA star had broken up with Tinashe, sparking a controversial dating triangle that involved the supermodel Kendall Jenner.
Kendall Jenner (May 2018 – Present)
Kendall Jenner may have been the woman Ben Simmons cheated on Tinashe Kachingwe with if the timeline of their relationship is anything to go by. According to Page Six, they had been seeing each other for a few weeks and before starting a formal relationship in May.
As though their messy start wasn’t confusing enough, the actual relationship didn’t get any better. They supposedly split sometime in the second half of 2018 but found their way back to each other. Kendall was seen at one of his games in November 2018, cheering and booing his opponent, which at the time included Tristan Thompson.
Their attachment to each other has remained ever since, even though the relationship has been on-and-off. It would appear their respective schedules as personalities at the top of their professions are getting in the way of building a sustainable relationship.
Ben Simmons had been romantically linked to other stars such as Brittany Renner and Amber Rose, but they are considered speculations. If they did happen, they do not seem to have been more than a fling as they never lasted long enough to be termed a relationship.
